Over Coffee
by Yakolev
Summary: Faced with the threat of another Team Plasma scheme, Lugia and her legendary allies make the first move against the nefarious group. However, the attack doesn't go as smoothly as anticipated, and when Lugia is forced to save her friend she ends up learning far more about him than she had anticipated. Legendshipping oneshot, Lugia/Latios


**Over Coffee**

"Majestic to all: we're closing fast on the base. Spearhead, get ready to drop altitude and open a window for Thunder to infiltrate."

Lugia shivered as freezing winds slipped between her wings, the avian gritting her teeth to deal with the perpetual numbness from hours flying high above the snowy Unovan mountain range. She looked to her left first to see if "Spearhead" had received her psychic message. Latias looked back at her, feathers peeled back by the airstream as she grimaced slightly. "Got it. Just scatter them and let Raikou and the others in. Should be easy," she said mentally, giving the bird a half-hearted smile.

"It'll be fine, Latias," they both heard in their heads. To Lugia's right Latios smirked, crimson eyes trained right on her. "Shoot to disrupt, wreak havoc, make a mess. We've ran interference a million times. Besides, Lugia will tell us what to hit if she gets enough intel. Isn't that right?"

"You're looking to create a distraction on the deck, hopefully grouping the majority of the forces up and around the bridge," she said, angling her wings to correct her course. "That'll give Thunder the chance to sneak into the ship itself to disable whatever they're designing inside. You'll wave off and loiter as support after Thunder penetrates the lower decks, since Plasma will probably realize that your attack is a diversion."

"See?" Latios exclaimed, "Lugia got it all figured out already! Nothing to be worried about. Besides, if we get into trouble she'll just call the cavalry!"

"Let's not get to that point. But Latias, don't worry," she said, looking back over at her. "The mission's all planned out already. Look sharp – we're two minutes inbound."

"Got it, Majestic." The red dragon nodded strongly, faith rekindled by both of their assurances. Her auburn eyes narrowed as she started scanning far down below.

They coasted far up above the mountaintops, unable to even see the ground below. A frigid snowstorm below rendered Plasma's detection equipment useless, allowing the legendaries to get a sudden drop on the relatively undefended ship. For that diversion they had Kyurem to thank, for he was the one who brought the council's attention to this new threat. The ship's destruction was immediately deemed paramount because of how dangerous Plasma was – the last time the nefarious team struck, they managed to gain control of Kyurem's mind and freeze nearly the entire region to death with the Plasma Frigate. That was a situation none of the legendaries could afford, so a proactive strike would hopefully prevent such a calamity from occurring again.

"Hey, Lugia." Latios' voice rung out in her mind, and as she looked to him she was acutely aware of the fact he isolated the conversation to between just the two of them.

"Majestic."

"What?"

She rolled her eyes and shot him an annoyed glance. "Why can't you call me Majestic like everybody else?"

"Because names refer to multiple legendaries. 'Spearhead' refers to Latias and I because we, you know, spearhead almost every operation. We call Raikou's team 'Thunder' because of his speed and precision. The only other legendary who's given a name to himself is Rayquaza, and no one calls him Delta because he's got his head five feet up his ass half the time. You're nothing like that, which is why it's so weird you like being called well, not your name."

"You know how it sounds though, right?" she asked quizzically. "Spearhead, Thunder... Lugia? There's a consistency issue there. Not to mention it sounds unprofessional."

Latios laughed out loud, noise carried away in the wind. "Unprofessional? Lugia, we're legendaries. It doesn't matter if we're professional or not as long as we get it done. You just need to... unwind. Tell you what," he said as he looked at her with a grin, "After this mission we'll hit up a Hoennese coffee shop. It's in Lilycove, right next to the ocean – I know how much you're addicted to that stuff, so you'll definitely love it-"

"Latios, let's go!"

Latias suddenly fell from their formation with that eager shout. The crimson dragon plummeted, doubling her speed in an instant as she dropped straight towards the mountains below. The other legendary grinned sheepishly while Lugia just glared at him, gesturing to the ground with her head. "Time to jet – remember Lugia, coffee." With that note he rocketed off after Latias.

She considered telling him to stay safe, but advice like that would be out of place – it was a legendary's obligation to keep from harm on a mission; he didn't need her nagging at him. It's not as if he would take the advice well, either – Latios had a knack for reckless, flashy aerial techniques that not even Arceus could reprimand out of existence. But despite how risky his techniques were, it killed her to admit that he looked pretty damn cool in flight.

Her escorts gone, the white bird began her standard routine – battle management. Lugia's particular psychic ability allowed her to view the world through other legendary Pokemons' eyes if they permitted it. She could then access the viewpoints of anyone on mission, able to flip through them like television channels to gather intelligence on all aspects of the mission.

"Thunder to Majestic. How long until we can proceed?" Mewtwo's baritone voice sounded in her head.

She switched to his frequency, vision filling with sheer white for a moment. The mutant's team sat on the edge of a frigid snowbank, lying low as they spied on their target from afar. The ship centered in the lake was huge, much more massive than the Plasma Frigate from their last attack. Countless grunts and Pokemon walked around on the frozen lake's surface, carrying boxes, equipment, and all sorts of machinery into the belly of the massive tanker. She quickly estimated about fifty to sixty men and an equal amount of Pokemon – even though her team was composed of legendaries, fighting them head-on would be a tough battle.

That was fine, though; Lugia had anticipated this. After all, she hand-picked the members for stealth and agile combat. Direct action against the enemy was only a last resort.

The vision shifted as Mewtwo looked to his left. Raikou's familiar X-shaped muzzle and saber-tooth fangs came into view, dusted entirely in white snow. "Do we have an estimate yet?" he whined, petulant tone irritating her even through telepathy. "It's always like her to take so long! Can't you get her to give us a time at least?"

"You have to learn some form of patience, Raikou. She has to manage other teams as well." Behind him sat a greener, taller legendary, pinkish scarf giving her away as no other than Virizion. She sneezed, shaking it off with a cough. "Those it is pretty cold. Majestic, if you can hear me, an estimate now would be pretty good."

Lugia quickly checked the Eon twins' visions; they were just emerging from the cloud cover into the blizzard. Judging from the distance, they couldn't be less than half a minute away from the oil tanker. Small dots suddenly rose from the frozen lake below, Latias' acute vision quickly rendering them as a group of Hydreigon. "Two, maybe three more minutes," she called out to Mewtwo. "They sent an anti-air squadron to intercept Spearhead, so the attack is on."

"We saw them fly up too," she heard back. "We can't risk detection right now, so we'll remain here until you give us the go-ahead."

Content with his response, she tuned into Latias' vision as she heard Mewtwo relay her communications to the rest of his team. "Three Hydreigon," she heard a voice call out in her head. "Should be good hunting. Latias, break left!"

Lugia saw nothing but black and blue blurs zoom by at rapid speed. Latias looked back to see a ferocious Hydreigon, dragon floating mid-air as his Dragon Claw slashed at where she was just a moment before. Unfazed she flew out a wide loop and came zooming back in, Ice Beam charging in her maw in preparation for attack.

The beam shot mid-air with a frosty crack, striking the Hydreigon square in its chest. The Dragon Pulse it had charged in its hands discharged wildly, blue beams arcing across the sky as the frozen hydra plummeted towards the wintry lake below. Although powerful, the Brutal Pokemon's clumsy movement was no match for Latias' agility. Two more shots claimed two more casualties, Latias single-handedly dispatching the squadron with ease.

Lugia then swapped to Latios further ahead in the attack. The visions she saw were reminiscent of all those flight movies Raikou always watched – the sky was upside down for a minute, white atmosphere below and frigid lake above as Latios soared weightlessly through the air. Arcs of ice, fire, and electricity flashed danger close to the dragon but he unflinchingly pushed on right towards the tanker.

The vision jerked suddenly when he climbed high, avoiding a Thunder Wave streaking just below him, only to plummet to avoid an Ice Beam lancing from the ship. Half of his vision flashed blue as Latios shot several Dragon Pulses from his maw, brilliant beams peppering the ship's bridge with suppressing fire. The smoke cleared to reveal a Cryogonal and his trainer unconscious against the blackened steel bridge, fight knocked out of the pair.

By now Plasma was focusing its entire attacking force on the two agile dragons above, teams of dragon and flying types taking off as other grounded Pokemon released their artillery into the sky. Lugia risked dipping a bit closer to the battle, diving through the chilly cloud cover and over the battlefield. Watching the conflict from high above, Latios and Latias seemed to have provoked an anthill. Streams of tiny dots flowed out of the ship onto the plain white battleground below, explosions ripping mid-air as the two factions exchanged fire.

A couple stray lightning bolts flashed far too close to comfort, and the white bird bolted up above the clouds before she could actually get electrocuted. "Hey, Lugia, what were you doing down here?" she heard someone say in her head. "You gonna come help us?"

"No, Latios, I am not," she replied shortly, cheeks flushing when she realized he actually spotted her below the clouds. "Pay attention to your mission instead." She flipped to his eyes and saw the vast expanse of the ship's steel, grey deck from above. The picturesque view started flashing red a moment later, powerful explosions ripping across the deck as Latios strafed the deck with Dragon Pulses. Pokemon and humans alike scrambled away from the destructive firestorm raining down from above.

He pulled up from his gun run, giving her a good view of how much chaos he had caused just by that one flyby. The deck was now ablaze, brilliant yellow fires roaring as they consumed whatever cargo the tanker had on board. "You want in on this, Lugia? You're missing out!"

Her mouth slightly dropped at his question. It simply floored her that he was able to joke even after that adrenaline-boosting blitz, like it was more of a game than anything else to him. She struggled to maintain short, clean communication as she responded back, "Keep on target, Spearhead. Thunder's going in as soon as you two start running the deck again."

"I got them all, Majestic! What next?"

Latias' voice was welcome especially after her brother's communications, and she seized the moment to regain her professional composure. "Good work, Spearhead," she relayed to the two of them. "Coordinate your attacks to keep their attention on the bridge."

Switching off their frequency, she then called to Mewtwo. "Thunder, advance on the target. Enter at the stern – Spearhead is focusing their efforts on the bridge, so there shouldn't be any resistance at the back of the ship. Remember, Arceus wants the Plasma technology recovered intact. Make that your priority."

"Roger. Raikou, Virizion, let's go!"

After issuing further orders, Lugia surveyed the airspace around her carefully, making sure that the vast blue sky contained no direct threats. Although she was powerful due to her legendary status, her battle experience was largely limited to just supporting actual attackers. If the enemy ever figured out she was coordinating the attack, she couldn't possibly defend against an entire squadron of Garchomp or Hydreigon they'd send to neutralize her. For defense she relied entirely on stealth and the force projection of those under her command. Thankfully she rarely had to summon her escorts to defend her – doing so made her feel like a child, an asset to be protected rather than relied upon.

Comforted that no enemies directly threatened her, Lugia felt safe tuning into to Latias' view. Immediate shock rolled through her when she saw that the Eons weren't engaging the enemy from the air. The two of them actually floated barely above the deck of the massive ship, surrounded by a whole throng of attackers! Latios and Latias pressed their backs against each, their claws slashing at ferocious speeds. Plasma Pokemon charged at the blurred Dragon Claw defensive, only to fall victim to their frenetically sharp claws as the dragons tore through anyone foolish enough to advance. Fear spread through the enemy like a disease, the horde approaching more and more reluctantly.

But there were so many of them... For a short moment the Eon duo seemed hopelessly trapped, backed in against each other as countless minions approached from all sides. They could keep up their attacks for a while, but would they be able to escape at all? Panic flooded her mind, and she wondered if she could extract them from their predicament. Thunder had just started into the first level of the ship, and their presence couldn't be compromised... the rescue team Arceus assigned her needed at least ten minutes to arrive, at least!

"Break formation!"

Latios' strong cry rang like a bell in her head, striking through those all those doubts she harbored. A moment later her vision went black, the blue dragon forcefully severing the mental link between them. Morbid curiosity drove Lugia to risk diving below cloud cover so she could get a better view of the battlefield. What plan did that damn dragon have in mind?

She watched a pair of dots jet far above the ship below. They soared into the sky like missiles, bodies shining bright as the legendaries escaped the conundrum below them. Slowly but surely, the light continued to expand, consuming them entirely as Lugia's eyes watered from staring at the miniature sun.

A split second later the sphere hurtled downwards like a stone, dropping straight onto the deck filled of enemy combatants. The entire battlefield exploded with an intense radiant light, Lugia able to feel the heat of the millisecond flash on her feathers. Vision absolutely white, she nearly cowered from the power of the attack as a powerful thunder boomed across the theater. Her instincts drove the blind legendary up into the clouds and away from the aftermath.

When the images seared into her retinas finally began to subside, the bird felt something attempt a psychic connection with her. "…dammit!" she heard Raikou yell in her head.

Mewtwo linked his vision a second later, allowing her a view of a large room filled to the brim with power cells, electronics, generators, and other complicated Plasma technology along the walls. Convoluted, tangled wiring connected each wall-mounted device to a small computer terminal right in the center of the room. Raikou sat in the middle of all the chaos, paws working delicately at a keyboard designed for anything but a quadruped. "I can't work in these conditions," he complained out loud, "Especially with Spearhead banging this tanker to hell!"

"Advising that Spearhead suppress with less destructive attacks," an exasperated Mewtwo translated.

A loud, panicked shout cut Lugia's response short. A Zoroark blew through the single watertight door Virizion guarded, tackling her to the ground as the dark-type drew blood with a sharp slash. But the deer was more than prepared for combat – within seconds the grass-type threw him off, nailing the attacker with a Double Kick right in the temple.

Mewtwo caught the unconscious body before it fell on the ground, unceremoniously tossing it out before any additional forces could pile through the door. With frustration he found the door lock to be nonexistent, mechanism completely blown out by the Zoroark's attack. Instead he was forced to pin the door shut with psychic force. Lugia could sense his increasing nervousness despite his best efforts to remain calm and collected.

"Raikou, you have to hurry up," he said steadily enough, loud voices from outside becoming more audible by the second. "As soon as they bring a Heatmor in, this door's history! Majestic, you have to prevent them from getting anything else down here! Forget what Raikou said earlier – light up the entire ship if you have to. Just buy us some time!"

"Got it, Thunder," she replied tersely. She switched to Latios' view to survey how much damage their little explosion caused. The two Eons were just circling above the oil tanker, loitering as they gazed out at a huge circular dent on the surface of the ship. To her immense surprise the massive bridge now was only half its previous height height. The top half laid dead on the lake's surface far away, ripped asunder by the sheer force of their attack.

With their eyesight Lugia examined the deck more closely – she saw both Pokemon and humans strewn across the deck, minds likely scrambled by the psychic burst. Lugia was impressed – with that one attack they cleared out a majority of the defenders and rendered the ship completely inoperable.

"Luster Purge and Mist Ball combo. Looks like it did pretty good," she heard in her head. "You freaked out about us down there, huh Lugia? Scared for our lives?"

"Don't be preposterous, Spearhead. I knew that you had a plan – it was so obvious."

"Obvious? I'm offended."

"Thunder is requesting fire on the stern," the flying-type said before he could question her fib any more. "Apparently you two missed some enemies, and they now know we're after their technology. Prevent additional enemy access to below decks from the rear of the ship."

Lugia heard two affirmations, colored streaks jetting towards the rear of the ship. Mewtwo then told her that they were prepared for exfiltration. "Just going to Psycho Cut through the hull and escape," he said, seeming to ignore the massive brawl between Virizion and several Pokemon right behind him. "The steel's pretty thick, but I've worked through worse before."

"Good, Mewtwo. Hopefully we can conclude this mission soo-" She cut her message short, a sudden sharp pain surging through her right wing. Lugia snapped her vision back to reality, seeing a crimson gash staining her white wing. Blood fell to the earth as she tried to look around, see who the attacker was. Nobody had ever sneaked on her before like this; what was happening?!

Sharp pain shot up her leg as she nearly screamed, feeling cold steel slice clean through her skin. The agony burned so intensely she halted her flight midair, spinning around to ascertain the situation. What the white bird found chilled her right to the bone.

Several Skarmory, ironclad with razor-sharp wings, flew circles around the bloodied legendary. She shot an Aeroblast at one of them, failing to even land a hit as the steel-type cawed mockingly at her. Lugia instead switched to a futile Ice Beam instead, her body tensing as adrenaline began to rush through her body. Without the means to fight, she was forced into her only other option: escape.

Lugia flattened the blue ridges on her back before diving down, leading the steel birds into a high-speed chase. As the wind howled past her ears, she knew deep down that they were faster – they ranked higher than even Garchomp in aerial threats. Agile, clever, and deadly, they worked in teams to effortlessly eviscerate whatever their target was. A testament to their menace was that even Rayquaza, a seasoned veteran, almost died after directly engaging four of them.

She counted _five_ on her tail.

The ice-cold wind seared her gashes as they openly bled and throbbed. Tears formed in her eyes, though Lugia didn't know whether it was because of the pain or because she knew she was going to die. The legendary was there when a rescue team brought the battle-worn Rayquaza back to the Hall of Origin, gold-plated tiles stained with blood as his organs dared to fall right out of his body. It was only through Cresselia's surgical talent and a healthy dose of luck that the dragon managed to survive at all.

Feeling a blade nick her tail, she suppressed a cry as she again made a tight turn. Even with his tough, emerald armor Rayquaza wasn't able to fend off those attackers. In several places they had punched right through, shattering the scales and puncturing whatever was underneath. Lugia didn't even have the luxury of any protection at all. What chance did she have of surviving without help?

With that she momentarily overcame her shock and put out a distress call to her escorts. "Priority message for Spearhead!" she announced as evenly as a bleeding, panicking mess of a legendary could sound. "Majestic is under attack! Counting five Skarm aggressors! Repeat, Majestic is under attack! Move to defend!"

To stall for time, Lugia executed a steep turn up and to the right, then a hard left, a dive straight down through the clouds and then a climb back above them... but as fear consumed her mind the Skarmory seemed impossible to throw off, gaining on her with each passing second. The steel-types chased down the giant white target in the sky, two of them positioning themselves on her left and right side the moment she leveled off her flight.

Lugia's composure completely disappeared when they leered at her with those poisonous yellow stares, her mouth trembling as she saw her life flash before her eyes. Without any recourse, she mustered the last of her psychic energy and directed it squarely at the one legendary she trusted the most. "Latios! Please! I need you!"

As the Skarmory began to close in on her, she finally realized that the blue-streaked dragon wasn't coming. He was probably too far out to reach her in time, still trapped fighting Plasma down on the ground. And even if he did hear her, what was more important – the mission or her?

Or maybe he didn't actually care about her as much as she thought he did.

As she closed her eyes shut, the sound of crackling electricity suddenly filled the air around her. She saw the two Skarmory around her plunge through the clouds in a spiral, a smaller blue dot shooting up to meet her. "I'm here!" the bird heard her savior shout. "I'm here, Lugia! Are you alright?"

She saw Latios fly right at her, shooting off Thunderbolts at the pursuing Skarmory. The electricity bolted into the bright blue sky, missing the attackers by just a hair. Those warning shots were enough though, causing them to wave off and stay at a distance. The blue dragon fell in formation besides Lugia, examining her body to assess her damage. "What the hell happened?" he demanded, fury barely contained in his voice. "Your wing's bleeding... your leg, too! It looks bad! We gotta get you away from here, fast!"

"They snuck up from behind," she said, gasping. "Before I knew it they were cutting me up – I barely got away before they could do more damage... but I can still fight!" She winced as Latios' wing grazed hers for a moment, poking into her wound. "Can you hit the other three?"

"I caught the first ones by surprise. They won't fall for the same thing twice." The feathered dragon gritted his teeth as he packed on some extra speed. "Ever since that moron Rayquaza fought them head-on I've just sniped those bastards, but that's not really an option right now? Any ideas, strategist?"

Lugia struggled to think, consciousness beginning to slip. Her leg and wings trailed blood, and she didn't know how much longer she could sustain flight with those wounds. She couldn't perform any steep turns or anything that required serious mobility, so out-flying their attackers was out of the question...

"Let's do the Arbok," she said all of a sudden.

Despite practically running for his lives, Latios managed to give her the most disbelieving look he can muster. "Are you serious? We haven't done that maneuver in years. And can you even do it? Can you keep that angle of attack with the wounds you've got?"

"We have to try," she persisted. "It's the only way we can stay alive."

She could virtually hear him sigh as he weighed the decision in his head. "Those Skarmory are smart. If they figure out what we're doing, we'll definitely pay for it. Do you trust yourself, Lugia?"

That was a real question, especially coming from Latios of all legendaries. If Lugia wasn't capable of performing the maneuver or attacking well, then he could very well die. The fact that he had asked whether she trusted herself rather than whether he could trust her gave her some quick insight, though. Latios was willing to entrust his life completely to her as long as she had the confidence to perform the attack with him... had they not been in such a perilous situation, she would have actually been flattered by the question.

"Yes."

"Alright... okay, they're right behind us." As Latios ran through the preparatory steps, she heard the wind whistle much more loudly in her ears, and the airflow around her wings grew colder... this was do or die. Whatever little blood she had left pounded through her head, adrenaline dulling the pain in her wings. If she couldn't complete, then...

"Drop altitude in three."

Their bodies tensed up, preparing to execute an immediate freefall.

"Two..."

They increased their angle towards the sky, rising higher and higher. The Skarmory pursued, metallic beaks clacking as they followed their prey skywards.

"One..."

Latios and Lugia exchanged looks. The foolhardy grin on the blue dragon's face disappeared, replaced by a grim line. If nothing before indicated the gravity of the situation, his absolute lack of humor put her barometer on full tilt.

"NOW!"

At the declaration both of the legendaries sank a hundred feet below the pursuing Skarmory. As Lugia looked back the steel-types first seemed confused, but quickly angled their bodies lower to fly down at their targets. If the aggressors had even a moment to drop to their altitude, the plan was busted. "Kill speed!" she yelled.

The duo went from a hundred to zero, snapping their wings out to drastically increase their air resistance. The wind around them completely died as three shadows passed over them at rapid speed. The two legendaries grinned at each other breathlessly – the Skarmory took the bait!

The blue dragon sped immediately, and he caught up right behind the Skarmory in nere seconds. He put a quick Thunderbolt through one of them, watching the electricity do its work as Lugia fell into formation besides him. She aimed an Ice Beam directly at another bird's wings, crystals rapidly spreading through those knifelike feathers. Two Skarmory, completely unable to fly, shrieked pitifully as the clouds below consumed them.

Lugia wanted to yell out loud – the maneuver actually fucking worked! Getting rid of the last attack would be trivial, and then they'd all be able to return home.

The final Skarmory coasted alone ahead of them, not even trying to pull any maneuvers as it flew perfectly straight. Alarms immediately went off in Lugia's head, but Latios already positioned himself behind the steel bird by the time she could verbalize a warning.

Her heart skipped a beat as the Skarmory suddenly fanned its wings out and went vertical. Lugia realized in horror that it was trying to imitate the maneuver they just completed, but the Skarmory didn't account for the altitude drop! _You can't do that!_ she thought. _If you don't drop, your attacker will…!_

Unable to control his speed, Latios ran straight into the metal wall at two-hundred miles per hour.

Lugia barely heard the sickening crunch of his impact, immediately clipping the stunned Skarmory's wings with an Ice Beam. As she sent the last of the attackers spiraling downwards she called out fearfully for her friend. "Latios?!" She gazed down with narrowed eyes, seeing a tiny blue dot grow smaller and smaller against the cloudy backdrop. Her mouth dropped, and for a split second she just hovered there, doing nothing as she just flapped her wings. That wasn't Latios. He wouldn't fall unconscious or die like that. That little blue dot was a Skarmory, not Latios.

She found herself diving before her thoughts could catch up to her. Wind screamed around her as Lugia folded her wings to the side, picking up velocity in her descent. The legendary was scared, breaking every personal speed record she could possibly imagine. Her heart raced a million miles a minute as she wondered what awaited her down there, if she could save Latios in time, if she would become paste if she collided with the frozen lake down below...

Her large body speared through the cloud layer, vapors tearing away at her body with her rapid descent. Below laid a spectacular view: the Plasma ship burned brightly, smoke pluming above the lake as the tanker listed on its side. Multiple explosions rocked the deck, fire daring to consume everything on the ship. She faintly wondered if Raikou and his team managed to make it out alive before she saw a fireball blast out of the hull, seeing three small Pokemon jump out from the ship onto the ice below. "We've got the package. Moving to exfil."

She didn't really listen, though; all she could try to focus on was where Latios went... there! His body still plummeted downwards, only a few hundred feet from the lake below. His death was certain if he actually collided with the surface, and she tried to streamline her body even more to try and catch up with him.

It quickly became apparent that no matter how fast she went, Latios would still hit the ground before she could reach him. Fear pushed back by a sense of duty, she opened her mouth and charged up a burst of wind deep within, stronger than anything she had ever mustered below. For her friend to survive, she would have to literally cut open a hole for him to fall through.

"Majestic, did you receive my last message?" she heard. "Majestic, resp- what the fuck?"

"It'll be fine, Thunder," she said, hoping her quavering voice wouldn't betray her fright. She was close enough to the earth to see the team just standing on the ice, watching her dive down with impossible speed. "I'll be alright. Now retreat."

"But-"

"Complete the objective! Go!"

She severed her mental link with Mewtwo, choosing instead to focus on the fast approaching ground below. Her open jaw stiffened as she channeled all of her energy into her single shot. If it was powerful enough, her attack could save both of their lives. If it wasn't, they were both dead.

" _Do you trust yourself, Lugia?_ "

Latios was only seconds away from collision. She felt the last of the charge in her attack complete, and concentrated on where he would land. Lugia calculated the trajectory, checked it twice, and lined herself up with the target.

 _I trust myself, Latios._

With focused mind and focused aim, she let loose the single most powerful attack in her entire life.

The Aeroblast spiraled down faster than the speed of sound, cracking violently as the hurricane-like attack actually warped and deformed the air around it. The lake's frozen surface buckled the moment her attack connected, millions of tiny crystals bursting high into the air while a dense fog settled around the hole itself. When Latios fell straight the mist it her heart skipped a beat, and she wondered whether he actually made it through into the water or got impaled on a spear of ice.

She shot another smaller, weaker Aeroblast at the hole, hoping to widen it so that she too could dive into right after Latios. With the haze completely covering the entry, she could do nothing but close her eyes and pray as she too fell through the mist.

The bird grunted in pain she felt the brutal impact of landing into the water. Spreading her wings in pain, her eyes immediately snapped open as she looked around left and right for the blue dragon. The sheer cold dug straight into her bones with a vengeance not even the chilly skies above could exact, but she persevered in her search. Latios _had_ to be down here somewhere – she saw him fall herself!

Lugia looked down, darkness making it difficult to see anything at all. But her eyesight did manage to make out a plane-like contour drifting below, sinking sluggishly into the abyss. With a cry she swam after it, large wings giving her just the thrust she needed to reach him before the blackness could swallow him whole.

The dragon lolled in her arms as she engulfed him in her grasp, but he was her sole source of warmth in the frozen lake. She kicked hard, propelling both of them to the small circle of light above with worry and panic.

The second they broke the surface of the water Lugia inhaled deeply, feeling crisp mountain air fill her breathless lungs. She first held her head close to Latios' chest, hearing labored, heavy breathing, but breathing nonetheless. His damp, white feathers were grey and red, concussive force of the collision definitely rupturing something below the skin as some gashes bled heavily. One of his arms seemed out of place, positioned in an angle that she couldn't have possibly imagined in a million years.

But he was alive, and that's all that mattered. She enveloped the dragon in her wings, chest heaving as a sob wracked her body. Salty tears flowed down her cheeks and fell below, slowly washing the blood from Latios' feathers. So much had happened so fast, so quickly, that her mind just began processing what had occurred in the past few minutes. For however much she fortified herself against his personality, for however much she clung to that distant concept of "professionalism" she prided herself on, her stoicism just shattered as Lugia cradled his body in her wings – she wanted to pretend that she didn't care about the cocky bastard, but her reaction betrayed any denials she could possibly make at that point.

She first pushed Latios out of the hole, laying his body flat on the ice as she herself struggled to pull herself out. The water flowed off her body burned her open wounds, but the sheer adrenaline in her veins dulled the sensation. The entire scene ahead of them was desolate, paint-stripped ship burning against the dusky background and wreckage littering the ice fields. It reminded her of a forsaken warzone, and it took her a minute to realize that a real battle did just occur here. A few Plasma grunts remained, though, and when they began to approach the two legendaries a chill went down her spine – Latios was knocked out and she was barely conscious, neither of them in any condition to fight. But she turned her gazes to the skies above and saw the silhouettes of Kyurem and Palkia approaching from afar. Lugia then felt just a bit better about her odds.

* * *

Latios woke to the scent of the sea breeze, groaning as he struggled to push a set of heavy blankets off of his body. The dragon winced at the pain in his right arm, looking to see it arrested by a splint. After a quick glance around he found himself in a large, sparsely filled cavern. It was obvious that room was set up just for him, with no amenities but just a table of medication sitting next to his bed. Faint rays of light shone on his face, light filtering from the room's exit.

With effort he managed to get off the bed, floating slightly as he continued to get his bearings. He respected the wooden constraints on his right arm, well aware of the pain testing it would incur.

Latios didn't expect to see a massive cavern right when he exited the room. The mouth of the cave before him yawned open to reveal a huge ocean, sparkling brightly in the distance. The salty breeze told him this was definitely somewhere in Hoenn, probably just off the coast of Lilycove if his sense of direction was correct. He was bewildered – no legendary he knew of lived around here, much less in a cave.

"Finally awake, are you?"

The familiar voice echoing through the cave, he turned to see a young woman standing to his side. She couldn't have been more than twenty, long blonde hair and blue gown flowing in the ocean breeze. Her complexion was fair, but pretty, thin brows furrowed as she looked him over once or twice. "You're looking better than before," she observed, her arms folding across her chest.

He would have assumed her to just be a normal human girl if it weren't for that massive psychic presence emanating from her body. "I could say the same about you, Lugia" he said in return, eliciting a chuckle from her. "I, uh...where are we? What time is it?" Anxiety began to take hold as he widened his eyes. "What happened back there? Is everybody okay? Where's everybody else?"

"Yes," she said simply.

"What?"

"Relax, Latios. Everybody's fine." It felt a little surreal to her to tell him to loosen up, given how often he needled her with the same suggestion. The truth was that he was looking fine, albeit his down an abject mess from just waking up. She had to conceal a grin at the concept of him having awful bed hair, feathers poking whichever way from his head and body as he stared irritably at her.

Lugia turned around gesturing to him to follow her into another room in the cavern. "I guess you'd consider this a hideout. We're right on Lilycove's front doorstep," she said as they walked into a kitchenette. He had to gaze in wonder at the sight, seemingly uncharacteristic of a cave of all places. A small gas stove sat in a corner, little butane cartridge heating a kettle set on the steel stovetop. Small bags of beans and instrumentation littered the shelf besides it; he could pick out a weighing scale, a couple beakers, a grinder, some white paper filters...

The girl invited him to sit at a plain wooden table, removing a chair back so he could float instead of sit. As she took a seat, Latios couldn't help but feel the setting to be so... surreal. With no information at all and Lugia seemingly amused at keeping him the dark, he couldn't help but feel at least a bit frustrated at the situation.

"I usually use this cave as a rest stop if I'm travelling farther out than Hoenn," she said, giving him at least a hint of an answer. She spooned some dark powder into a beaker as she turned to glare at him. "It's a secret that no one knows about, so _don't_ tell. I might actually end you if Mew or anyone else catches wind – could you imagine them begging and crying, asking me to live here all day, every day in this hideaway spot? Great place for shirking your job, by the way," she added. "Even Arceus couldn't find you here."

"That's a good plan," he said faintly, her words barely registering in his mind. As she put the glass beaker on the scale, he tried to steer her back to the important details. "But Lugia, what really happened? After, you know, when I hit that Skarmory head-on."

The whining kettle silenced whatever response she had prepared. In a flash the girl grabbed it, pouring the hot water straight into the beaker. The captivating aroma of coffee immediately filled the cavern as she filled it halfway to the top. She capped the steaming liquid with a lid, setting a small timer next to the glass. "Well, let's see," Lugia finally said, taking up the seat across from him. "After you hit the Skarmory you became unconscious and fell out of the sky, I dove straight after you to try to save you. I had to Aeroblast the lake apart just so that you wouldn't splatter like a bug against it. You splashed down hard and I dragged you out. Then I brought you here to rest. It's been a few days, now; you've been sleeping so much I worried you were in a coma."

They stared at each other for a bit, his crimson eyes meeting azure as the two considered the information she dumped out. "Wow," the dragon just said, looking down at the table. "I guess you saved me."

"What do you mean, 'you saved me'? I couldn't very well let one of my best allies die in battle, could I? My first responsibility as your controller is to keep you safe from harm."

"Well," he said, crafty look crossing his face, "What I meant was that doesn't feel like the full story. It's so stale – just facts and nothing else, like a report to Arceus. I'm interested in the details, the emotions, the struggle, the intrigue! How did our heroine feel about saving the day? You actually engaged in combat to risk life and limb for a friend?"

"I'm not quite sure why you'd be interested in that," she responded, trying her best to express disdain as she plastered boredom on her face. She would rather die than have him know that she went all-out to try to save him, basically bawling over his nearly-dead body when she recovered him from underwater. The endless teasing she would have to endure from him would surely drive her to murder one long-necked dragon.

Or maybe he would take it the wrong way – he would be stunned, shocked, speechless over the effort she expended to save his life. She didn't want the ghost of that hanging over every future interaction they had.

Either way, he would see her in a far different light if she said anything at all.

"Because it's an awesome story!" she heard him continue. "Let me put it this way: do you mean to tell me that this angel came down from the heavens to save poor old me, just a grunt? You say it's cause it's your duty, but I think there's something else..." He paused facetiously before snapping his claws, able to evaluate that creeping look of defeat on her face. "Whoa, maybe you actually _wanted_ to save me! Lugia wanted to save Latios! The council won't believe it when I tell them this! I'm flattered!"

Although she knew that he was completely joking, she didn't miss the note of earnestness in his voice. Her ability to deflect his questioning at its limits, she finally slipped up. The girl looked away, unable to even meet his gaze as she felt her temperature rise a few degrees. "Don't mention it," she muttered, hoping that he couldn't see her pale face flush red.

That was _not_ the proper reaction he expected – with the amount of sarcasm he just peppered her with, at the very least she should have shot back with some serious but impossibly quirky, Lugia-like technical phrasing instead of whatever subdued response she just gave. It didn't take sharp eyesight to see how she refused to look at him, or how her cheeks glowed. Then he realized that maybe she took his words to heart far more seriously than he intended.

He opened his mouth to retract his previous statement, but a part of him _was_ truly impressed about how she handled the situation. It must have taken a lot of bravery on her part, especially since she never engaged in actual combat. The fact that she assisted him in taking down those Skarmory and rushed in to save his life at the end spoke volumes; although they were friends, he didn't expect her to be completely willing to go so far for him.

But he couldn't bring himself to voice his thoughts. What he had previous said felt awkward enough now, but he'd probably die of shame if he just paraded that out for her to hear.

With that any hope for a normal conversation died. They instead sat for at least five solid minutes, comfortable with staring at anything but each other. Lugia was busy scratching at a ring in the wood when the timer suddenly went off. "It's ready!" she blurted with such preparedness that both of them cringed for a good second. "I mean, uh, the coffee..."

As Latios sat and watched, she brought out a pair of mugs from under the table and sat them before him. She carried the hot beaker over carefully, popping off the lid and replacing it with a plunged filter. Fresh, filtered coffee rose to the top of the French press as she pressed downwards on the device. "Six minutes," the dragon wondered out loud, watching her delicately pour the drink into their mugs.

"That's right – six minutes exactly," she said, pushing one of the cups at him. "Given the mass of the coffee ground used and their coarse consistency, you can determine the average grain size and calculate the optimal time that the grain requires to fully diffuse its flavor into the water. If you let them diffuse too little, you get weak coffee; too much, and it'll become unbearably bitter and burnt. You have to be very careful of how much time you allow the coffee to brew."

He blinked. Just like that, Lugia was back to her normal self, verbosity lining almost every one of her sentences. Or perhaps, he realized as he still saw a bit of pink dust her cheeks, she was just latching on to the sudden change of topic. "I didn't know you were so fanatical over coffee," he said lightly, helping her towards that goal.

The girl nodded as she took a sip of the brew, setting the mug down with a sigh. "Good coffee is hard to come by, you know. It's impossible to go back once you know the flavors you can if you brew it correctly."

Latios wrapped his good claw around his cup, about to sample it when he paused. "Hey, Lugia, remember what I told you before we started the mission? There's a great coffee place in Lilycove I've got to take you to sometime! I mean, we're right next to Lilycove, right? We should go!"

"Spinda's Café, right?" she asked with a faint smile, crossing her legs. "I was just there earlier this morning. Where do you think I got the coffee beans from?"

"Oh..." Lugia felt a pang of guilt as she saw his crestfallen face. "Half of the fun in going there is the experience, you know," he said, undeterred. "You get to sit there in the shade, feel the cool ocean breeze, chat with someone, maybe read a book..."

"Is that so? I could definitely try bringing you there, but I don't think you're in any condition to go at the moment," she said bemusedly, eying his splint. "Besides, who would you rather have prepare your coffee? Some human teenager, or Lugia herself?"

He couldn't help but grin at that brash display of arrogance. "Oh, I'm so honored," he said, leaning back as he raised his claws mockingly. "To be graced by Her presence and given the perfect, holy cup of coffee in an ocean cave-kitchen thing."

She covered her mouth and laughed, a rare sound that surprised Latios with how melodic it was. "Just try it, Latios. You won't regret it."

The aroma was certainly delectable enough, already smelling much nicer than whatever that coffee shop on the coast. That was enough reason for him to sample the drink, liquid hot but not scalding as it filled his mouth.

His first impression was thick, the coffee much more substantial than the more watery drink he and his sister normally got at the café. It was way stronger, too, but that was accompanied by accentuated notes of... something. Latios didn't necessarily pride himself as a food critic, and found no reason to start, but the way the flavors mingled left him impressed. "It's really good," he surmised simply, looking at an eager Lugia.

"Just good? What does it taste like?"

"It tastes like... coffee," he said, trying to divine what kind of response she was looking for. "It's stronger and thicker, but it tastes like coffee."

"What I mean is what notes are there?" she asked, exasperated despite him giving just one response. "Do you taste any hints of Iapapa berry? What about Leppa? It was supposed to be rather earthy – at least, that's what they told me."

He sighed, already feeling the pressure of her questions bear down on him. He took another sip and said, "Lugia, it's coffee, and it tastes pretty good. Just let it go, you snob."

An impossibly indignant expression crossed her face as she stood up, glaring at him with all her might. "A snob? Now you listen here-"

"At any rate, it's way better than what they serve at Spinda's Café."

That admission got her to shut up for at least a moment as he congratulated himself on diffusing the situation. "Humph," she huffed, turning her nose up at him. "I would hope that's the case, since I was the one who brewed it."

As Latios drank down his coffee, he just found Lugia's absurd petulance amusing and even adorable. It was one of the last things he expected out of a Pokemon whose regular jobs included providing battle support, but every legendary had their own small quirks. He stared across the table at her, watching as she drank slowly, mug never quite leaving her hands. "But Lugia," the dragon said, daring to broach the silence, "What was it like back then? Finding me in the lake like you said."

She set the mug down, faint smile fading as she looked back at him, grimacing with downcast eyes. "It was... bad, at first," she said, voice faltering as she searched for the right word. "You had hypothermia from being the frozen water for so long. You also suffered a lot of internal trauma as well as some facial fractures from your mid-air collision. The Skarmory's wings lacerated your face as well as your neck, but luckily nothing was fatal. All in all, surprisingly minor injuries given the speed at which you collided, but Cresselia and your sister managed to heal most of those up. That broken arm, though," she said, pointing at his splint, "was something they couldn't completely heal."

As she went down the list she remained thankful that she had the ability to remain completely technical about his wounds. It was so easy for her to slip and say something relatively innocuous like, "I thought you had died," but that would have brought on some unpleasant memories, more uncomfortable explanations, and maybe even a tear or two if she didn't watch herself.

 _So much for being stoic and professional_ , she thought.

Latios listened raptly to her explanation, facial expression switching between disgust and shock as he traced lines over where each listed wound once was. "Your sister wouldn't leave your bedside for the first day," he heard Lugia say. "She was worried sick, crying and asking me if you were going to be alright. I had to actually push her out because she was willing to give up protecting Alto Mare just to be with you. I was jealous, honestly."

"That sounds like her," he said, an almost paternal smile crossing his face. "I should return to Alto Mare soon, though –she'd be a lot happier knowing that I'm better. Thanks for taking care of me, by the way." He stared at her with those scarlet eyes, solemn countenance belying how casually he expressed his gratitude.

"Not a problem," she said a beat too quickly, fists curling under the table as she cursed herself for sounding so dismissive. "Though you should know that it frightened me just as badly. It was terrifying, seeing you plunge into the water like that." She shivered a bit, her body stiffening as she unwillingly began to go down a path she could never return from. _Stupid loud mouth. Stupid inhibition._

"I know I said that I blew the lake apart, but the hole was actually not that big. Imagine me in my actual size, forming a circle with my wings," she said, gesturing with her arms. "That's how small it was when you went through. There were so many things that could have gone wrong. You could have been skewered on a shard of ice. You could have broken your neck on impact. You could have frozen to death. I mean, for Arceus' sake-"

He held up a palliating claw, bringing her rambling to an immediate close as he sighed. "Lugia, consider this. You're alive, and so am I."

"What?"

The Latios grinned at the girl, laying his good arm on the table. "Don't be so melodramatic. Take a look at both of us. We're sitting here talking over coffee like nothing ever happened. Your wounds were fully treatable, weren't they? And me? If what you said about what happened was true, then it's nothing but a miracle that all I got in the end was just a broken arm!"

He lowered his voice, jovial edge subsiding as he looked straight at her. "Listen, Lugia I know you were terrified for both of us, especially after I hit the Skarmory head-on. And I know, yes, I almost died. Yes, I scared the living hell out of you. But you gotta give yourself least some credit, you know! You did what no one but my sister would ever do – you risked everything just to save me."

"And for that, Lugia, Majestic, whatever you want me to call you," Latios said softly as he looked her right in those bright blue eyes, "I owe you everything. Thank you."

She just sat there, coffee going cold as she just stared back at him. She didn't know how to respond – it was difficult to get the Eon Pokemon to be serious, but the last thing Lugia expected out him was this intense expression of gratitude. She found it suddenly hard to breathe, salty breeze harsh and grating her throat. Her heart sank like a stone in her heart as she just stared and stared – the sheer sincerity in his voice was far too much for her fragile mind to handle.

"You're welcome," she managed to croak, and tears sprang unbidden to her eyes. Her chair clattered as she rushed out of the small room, releasing her restraints and reverting to her true form in the main cave. As she tried to orient herself in her huge body, she felt a claw grasp at her wingtips. She considered tearing away from the sensation at first, but quickly admitted that she liked the feeling more than she was willing to admit.

"Oh, come on. I don't like making girls cry. That's Rayquaza's job." Latios floated up to her eye level with a genuine look of distress. "I don't know what I said, but I'll take it back if you just stop crying."

Wiping at her face with a wing, she managed to gain enough composure to look back at him. "Why do you have to be so honest?" she asked, chest rising unsteadily. "You say these things a million times in that dumb sarcastic tone of yours and not once do I blink an eye, but the moment you mean what you say everything changes." The white bird forced a choke back as she contemplated his expression, softened crimson eyes observing her as a frown crossed his mouth. "I just don't understand."

"I could say the same for you," he countered, confused look dominating his countenance. "You command many teams and many legendaries. You lead each mission like you don't even care – you don't ever let your emotions get the better of you. But this time was different. What caused you to chase after me? If anything, it's unbelievable that you risked everything – the mission, the objective, your life – just to save me. You might think that everything I say is sarcastic," he said with a shake of his head, "But when I asked why Majestic came down from the skies for me, I was being serious."

The last thing he expected was an immediate response. "Do I need to spell it out for you?" she asked with a loud growl. Suddenly feeling apprehensive, Latios backed away from her as she glared at him through sodden eyes. "Is it not good enough just to feel it through the way I talked about you? Fine," she spat, wind gusting through the cave as she snapped her massive wings back. "I care for you, Latios, you moron! Do you really have to drive me to the point of tears to hear that I value you as one of my best friends? That I feel less confident in my ability to succeed whenever you aren't under my command? That this world would be a much darker, more awful place without you? That I couldn't live-" She snapped her mouth shut, knowing that even in her acrimonious rampage she didn't possess the courage to take that extra step. "Latios, are you just blind or dense or what?!"

As silence reigned after her assault, the blue dragon hung mid-air as he simply tried to process everything she had just said. He didn't even realize she valued him that much – half the time he was a thorn in her side, breaking procedure and protocol and whatever kept that legendary sane during operations. Her humor definitely didn't align with his, and beyond that she acted so aloof and distant that he previously thought of her unable to actually care for anyone. That severe reservation, combined with the technical phrasing and mannerisms she spoke with, caused many fellow legendaries to see her as little more than a colleague.

Her attitude actually made brutal sense – if she invested time and energy into a legendary only to have them pass away during a mission, the guilt and sorrow would likely consume her alive. Hell, the only comparison he could imagine was if he was somehow personally responsible for Latias' death. If that occurred, he wouldn't even question ending his own life.

That's why it was so bizarre to him that she placed so much trust and faith in him. He had thought she interacted with him out of some compulsive obligation because the two of them were paired together so much on missions. A funny feeling tickled his heart as he suddenly became aware of his breathing, his heart beating a little more hurriedly as he tried identifying what particular emotions captured the normally sane, reserved legendary.

"I just..." he started, looking down as he searched for some words. "I didn't know," he said lamely as he dropped his claws to his sides.

The awful thing was that he spoke the truth. He couldn't actually vent his frustration on the sobbing legendary out of sheer guilt, but how the hell was he supposed to know that Lugia cared for him? It wasn't as if she ever interacted with many others out of meetings or actual work, and she never expressed emotion around anyone. Sure, she had taken him and his sister out to lunch or dinner once in a while to celebrate a successful mission. Sure, he had acquiesced to her strange request to live with him a few days in Alto Mare under the guise of "human relations." Sure, she had requested Latios' involvement in every one of her missions to the point where Arceus had thrown his hands (if he even had hands, he thought) up in defeat and let her choose whoever she wanted. Sure, he had some weird moments where she would confide in him tidbits of information, temporary shyness fading as she approached him with thoughts and concerns that seemed flat-out uncharacteristic of her stoic nature.

What was that she called him? Blind and dense?

Her continual sobbing tugged at his heartstrings; Latios absolutely detested the sound of a crying female. Daring to float closer to her, he held out his non-broken claw so that he could stroke her cheek. Tears rolled down his white talons as he wiped them from her eyes, eliciting a startled jerk from the other legendary. To her credit, Lugia just huffed in surprise as she looked down and away, unable to escape how her snow-white face shone red even in her true form.

A moment later, though, she seemed to have found the courage to look back at him. When her deep, cerulean eyes made contact was his, Latios instinctively tensed up at how intensely they seemed to pierce into him. "We should go to Alto Mare," he murmured, voice barely a whisper as he slowly floated away from her. "Remember that one time you came over? When you stayed with Latias and me? The people would love to have you as a guest, you know. It's not every day they get to see the majestic guardian of the sea."

She couldn't help but smile at the reference to her name. "You didn't even try to make that subtle," she said in response, throat clearing as she breathed just a bit more easily. She paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts and composure as she looked at the dragon. "As much as I'd like to take the offer, you know I can't go. The last time I requested staying with you it was because Arceus wanted an audit of your work there, and I needed to stay for a few days."

"That's a lie if I've ever heard one," he said with a wolfish grin. "Especially after you fought so hard to get sent there in the first place. Oh, I know all about it," he said right as she opened her mouth in protest. "A big, green snake told me you won over him on getting assigned to Alto Mare. All things considered, it's impressive that you beat Rayquaza of all legendaries. He doesn't care for much, but when he tries, he _tries_." Latios left that last sentence on a sour note, hoping she wouldn't catch on.

She blinked for a moment, utterly failing to hide her surprise as a blush suffused her cheeks. "But Latios," she said, recouping much more quickly than he anticipated, "Would you rather it have been me or Rayquaza? If he had gone instead, who _knows_ what kind of trouble your sister could have gotten into...?"

"Lugia!" His offended response elicited a laugh out of her as he scowled. "You can't joke about that!" As his indignant voice went on and on, ringing off the walls about how he would die the day he saw Latias and that dumb arrogant wind chime together, it gave her a warm, fuzzy feeling to have turned the tables for once. He was so ridiculously overprotective of his sister, and adorably so; to mimic his expression, when he cares, he _cares_.

"So be glad that I fought harder to go than he did," she said after his outburst. "But the problem is there will be a lot of work that'll be waiting – debrief, battle analysis, post-processing, assessing whatever Thunder managed to recover." Lugia said that out loud more for her benefit than anything else; her pride prevented her from outright saying _yes, yes, I would actually drop everything right now just to go to Alto Mare with you._

If Latios understood the subtext in her statement, he definitely didn't show it. "But I suppose I could make some time for it," she said almost begrudgingly, shrugging with those massive wings. "I wouldn't mind, say, going to that ice cream parlor across from the Grand Canal, or going to some of those world-renowned cafes..."

"You're so bad at acting."

"Whatever, Latios!" Without any form of recourse, she settled on glowering at him as he laughed hard, one arm covering his gut as he almost started crying. She almost swung one of her wings at him before remembering that despite how whimsical he looked, he was definitely still injured. "But I'd like to go." she said, doing her best to rein in his humor.

He finally relented, a chuckle escaping him as he floated out towards the entrance. "Then let's go."

"Now?" Lugia expected him to offer soon, but immediately? But she shook her head – she really should have expected this from someone as impulsive as him. "Your arm isn't fully healed up yet. It won't hold up in flight."

"If I fly slowly enough the splint should hold," he said. "But do you mean to say you're rejecting my offer?"

She nearly damn well hissed at him, fixating a Seviper-like glare right at him with those intimating blue eyes. "If we don't go, expect me to put you on every danger-close mission for the rest of your days. And I'll do it, too!" she said, almost to reassure herself that she'd make good on that threat.

But they both knew she could never do something like that, especially after that outburst from earlier. A smirk crossed Latios' face as he decided against teasing her for that comment. Better to let Lugia keep her pride for now – and besides, he was confident he'd enjoy her company as much as she seemed to enjoy his.

He wouldn't let her win on all fronts, though. "Then we'll go. I'll fly slower just so for you," he shot back with a laugh. "But even then you might not be able to keep up!"

As he dove off the cliff and out into the open, Lugia felt her teeth grind at the very challenge. It was one thing for him to boast about his speed, but for him to outfly her even with a broken arm? She _had_ to beat him!

The giant bird got a running start from the back of the cave, charging straight outside and off the cliff. The ocean breeze tickled her nose as her wings snapped open, drafts from the sea below carrying her up and high above the water.

She couldn't help but let a silly grin overtake her face when she gazed out at the sunny sky and endless sea, a complete contrast to the unfriendly Unovan mountain range from days ago. Her chest swelled as excitement coursed through her veins, a newfound sense of jubilation filling her to the brim. Lugia hadn't felt so happy or free in such a long time – when was the last time she went out to fly and actually enjoyed it? When was the last time she'd been to Alto Mare? When was the last time she hung out with Latios?

But all those questions slipped away in the wind as she let out a cry of pure elation, high-pitched exclamation travelling far and wide across the ocean. It didn't matter when she last did anything, really.

What mattered was that she was doing something now, and damn did it feel good.

* * *

If you made it down here, congrats! This story is definitely something that isn't standard for the genre, and I struggled pretty hard at times to make it work. If you liked it, hated it, have constructive criticism of any kind, leave it in a review or message! I'm always looking to improve my writing.


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